Publication US2010/0090149 discloses a poppet valve for a compressor. This poppet valve has a cage in which a plurality of bores is produced. A closing element is arranged in each of the bores. The closing element is mushroom-shaped and has a stem and a head, the diameter of which is greater than that of the stem. The stem is held in a bore of the cage and contains a cavity in which a spring is held. At its end opposite the cavity, the spring rests on a bottom element which is arranged on the base of the bore in the cage. The head of the closing element is configured such that in the closed state it closes a bore in the valve seat plate, wherein the valve seat plate is connected to the cage via a screw connection. In the pressureless state, the closing element is held by the spring such that the bore in the valve seat plate is closed.
The closing element opens when the pressure of the fluid, in particular the gas flowing into the bores in the valve seat plate in the poppet valve, exerts a force on the head of the closing element which exceeds the spring force of the spring. According to US2010/0090149, it is proposed to vary the thickness of the bottom element. As a result the preload of the spring is changed and consequently the pressure which leads to an opening of the closing element. If bottom elements of different thicknesses are used in the valve for otherwise identically configured closing elements and springs, the poppet valve may be used to regulate the fluid through-flow.
The poppet valve known from publication US2010/0090149 has the disadvantage that its function deteriorates after a certain operating duration, in particular when the valve is operated with a contaminated fluid, for example a gas which contains droplets or particles. This leads to an inhibition or blocking of the movement of the closing element, which has the consequence that the closing elements remain in the closed position or no longer close completely.